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Saturday, 9 August 2008

LOOK! Our home is being born! In between the raindrops Tui has been hammering and sawing and building and chiseling and cursing and fixing and making our nest. Here for you to see are some moments from our recent doings. The truck's tailgate has been removed entirely and replaced by the front door and another little welsh chapel window. The windows have latches, the floor has beautiful wooden floorboards, the back of the truck has expertly built wooden walls, and most excitingly of all, our home has a fire! The flue pipe needed a little encouragement to fit but is now elbowing its way nicely up through the roof.

We had our first cup of tea on the stove yesterday whilst imagining the next stages - kitchen and seat building, pictures on the walls, cupboards galore and bookshelves.... Somehow lighting a fire in our truck-home makes it really seem like we are getting there. For someone who hasn't ever built anything with wood before, Tui is doing a superbly superb carpentry job and is thoroughly enjoying it too. He has taken gentle care over every last detail and trundled round to the truck every wet day, slurping through puddles to work away at making our lovely home, while I join him in painting breaks for cups of tea and sandwiches and the odd little accordion serenade!

57 comments:

Your wheeled home is looking beautiful already. When my hubby and I moved into our boat the only functional part was our stove -- and that first cup of tea will always be the most perfectly brewed tea I will ever taste.

This is fantastic... so cozy and versatile. I must say that I do love the look of the beautiful wood against the rich green of the truck. The little windows with the diamond-shaped panes are such a lovely touch, too. I can't imagine having my first tea in such a lovingly built home. Look forward to seeing more pictures from your new home!

Rima and Tui, it is SO lovely!!! So artisic and has so much character! (would I expect anything less from the two of you?) I am so happy for you. Wish I was there to enjoy a cup of tea and sandwich and listen to some wonderful music.

Hi, your home on wheels looks wonderful. Forgive me if I sound all mumsy now, but, I am thinking, "what happens to the stove if you slam on the brakes?" Will it carry on traveling forward? My sons say that I could worry for England, now I am worrying for Scotland too.

Good evening Rima, how wonderful your nest is looking! I am so pleased for you both.Is there going to be a special place for your art supplies and do you have a storytelling chair?I'm being selfish asking this, as I love to see your work and read your story.

Oh Rima. It is GORGEOUS! I am a little bit envious I admit. How satisfying that first cup of tea must have been. Fair play to Tui for such care and attention to detail. What wonderful wanderings you have ahead of you!

Rima, I can feel your excitement and satisfaction; and anticipation of the rest of your artistic expression that will be your rolling-along home...

Everything has such special meaning....when we built our home this is the gradual process we followed, finding things that stimulate your imagination and giving them a new life and a place to share with them every day..

It is a gentle life of following your heart and I wish it could happen to everybody.. It is hard to explain how it makes a person feel deep down inside.

As I watch your journey I feel my life's excitement all over again. Thank you so much.

That is absolutely whimsical and wonderful and magical. I am so happy for you and can certainly sense the thrill in your voice. You should both be very proud. I am so happy that a friend recommended your site. I will be back often and hope to see more pics as the inside all comes together. Such an inspirational project, thank you so much for sharing!!!

Rima, it is just stunning and I am so impressed with your work. Thank you for the thoughtful way it was wrapped. The scarf is lovely. This is something I will treasure for ever. Thank you my gypsy friend.

Hello Rima! I came over from Pamela Terry and Edward's blog. Your blog home is fascinating and so is your new home on wheels! Best wishes as you and Tui continue on building your new abode. I shall visit again and often.

Hi Rima and Tui, I too came from Pamela Terry and Edward's blog. What a find. I love your art, it's magical and mystic. What a fantastic home you have. Just one thing. Where do you keep all your art things? I have stuff everywhere and can never find what I want, when I want it! Good luck to you both,Will visit often,

It is quite beautiful. It blew the cobwebs off a memory stored in the far corner of my mind, that had gone unnoticed for many years. When my grandma was 8 and living in Germany, the Sinti came and camped near her town. She thought their homes were so beautiful and their lives so wonderfully nomadic and romantic, she ran away from home and followed them to their next camping site.

Unfortunately, her father caught up with her there, and he did not believe in sparing the rod. She had a lovely day, however, before he arrived.Your site is magical and wonderful. I shall be back often.

I am a first time visitor through Pamela nd Edward's blog: The House of Edward. I very nuch enjoy your very enchanting blog and hope to get back soon! I love your home on wheels, and your talent is astounding! I am very happy to have found you. ;)

Thanks for oppening the doors of your home for us. Feels like a guest! Your place looks really warm and full of love. Amazing!The Wolksvagen van where I once lived for 6 months was pretty nice, it had old furnitures full of books and stuffed animals, Victorian lamps and curtains, a little stove and a sink. But it was nothing compared to this!

I've had traveller friends living in trucks like yours but never seen anything so nice and charming. You must be proud!

Found your beautiful blog via Pamela and Edward - will definitely bookmark you to come back, I don't think I have ever seen such beautiful, magical things - just gorgeous. And yes, your wheeled home looks absolutely lovely - so cosy and lovingly made. Will surely be back to have a proper look around.

Hello everybody, well what a lovely and encouraging lot of words.. thank you! We are very chuffed that everyone is so excited with us about our home progress... It is fabulous to be able to share adventures like this around the world isn't it!

We will no doubt be stopping in some towns near some of you one day when we're on the move, so be sure to come for a cuppa!

I love to hear other folks tales too - particularly liked the one about your grandmother running off with the gypsies Qugrainne :)

And to answer a couple of questions - Valerie - yes the fire is WELL bolted to the floor - no chance of it flying about en route! And Gina - I will have plenty of shelved and cupboards for all my Things!!

All the best to you all and thank you as always for wandering and enjoying my tales here - I feel flattered.

Rima this is the most amazing collaboration I have ever seen in my entire life! I am blown away by your little home!!! I wish I lived closeby just so I can see you drive by (and it looks so completely beautiful where you live too!)Housewarming love!

reread this post...made me look in the forgotten nooks and crannies of my own home for photos of my old gypsy vardo. looking at them reminded me of so much...i should email you the images! i envy how much space yours seems to have, vardos are so so small...

About Me

Rima Staines is an artist using paint, wood, word, music, animation, clock-making, puppetry & story to attempt to build a gate through the hedge that grows along the boundary between this world & that. Her gate-building has been a lifelong pursuit, & she hopes to have perhaps propped aside even one spiked loop of bramble (leaving a chink just big enough for a mud-kneeling, trusting eye to glimpse the beauty there beyond), before she goes through herself.

Always stubborn about living the things that make her heart sing, Rima’s houses have a tendency to be wheeled. She currently dwells in an old cottage on top of a hill on the edge of Dartmoor with her beloved, Tom, & their big-hearted, ice-eyed lurcher, Macha.

Rima’s inspirations include the world & language of folktale; faces of people who pass her on the street; folk music & art of Old Europe & beyond; peasant & nomadic living; magics of every feather; wilderness & plant-lore; the margins of thought, experience, community & spirituality; & the beauty in otherness.

Crumbs fall from Rima’s threadbare coat pockets as she travels, & can be found collected here, where you may join the caravan.